People who have developed diabetes very often have a difficult time
managing their foods to control their disease. There are many reasons for this. One reason is sometimes a lack of concise knowledge about the nature of their disease. (Not everyone clearly understands the mechanisms by which diabetes forms, or causes damage).
Other possible reasons for the inability to change dietary patterns may be due to the lack of knowledge of others within their peer group, which can lead to encouraging the consumption of foods which are not at all good for diabetic persons... such as baking them a beautiful birthday cake with lots of frosting, or encouraging the diabetic to eat out often with them. (It can be much more difficult to put together a healthy meal when eating out than it is at home, since the specific foods which make up the meal when eating out are not under our control, and aren't specifically chosen for the specific needs of diabetics.) Even though some of the more progressive eating establishments do offer "diabetic friendly" meals, none that I've seen yet are actually appropriate for folks with diabetes, since they contain either too much refined carbohydrate material or too much of the "poor quality" fats, and too much protein. As most of us realize, restraunts were originally began for people who were travelling or working away from home, to provide meals for those without adequate food preparation facilities.
Many times, we use food in other ways (besides for nutrition). Many people gain a great deal of comfort from their foods, since often they are carrying on a tradtion of eating which was passed down from generation to generation, in the form of recipes and traditional foods.
I know we all cherish "good home cooking", since it reminds us of our roots and our families, and the patterns are comfortable, (on some levels), although they may indeed aggravate diabetes. In cases where traditional foods are eaten, recipes can be revised to exclude most of the refined carbohydrates and poor quality fats, so they consist of healthier raw ingredients.
Sometimes, it is no doubt tempting for people with diabetes to think that they can go out to eat, and eat just as they wish. Perhaps they don't feel good about having people fuss over them, regarding what food choices are available. Or, the situation may make a diabetic feel bad , or guilty that they can't safely eat like eveyone else. These types of thoughts will only act as stumbling blocks for diabetics. Instead, I ask each individual to try to develop a thought process which includes positive thoughts (such as the following ones), quite often:
" I AM worth the effort of working to change my diet, so that it suits my disease."
"If I pay close attention to the foods I eat, taking the time to avoid foods which cause me problems, I will feel better in my body, and enjoy life more."
"I have a wonderful bunch of supportive friends within this group. It can be fun working together with them to design delicious food dishes and meals which are healthy, and then share these with others."
It is as important to avoid blaming oneself for getting the disease as it is to engage in the personal investigation which will show each person which illnesses or lifestyle habits may have (unwittingly) contributed towards the formation of the diabetes.
After all, there are a million fast food purveyors out there in the marketplace, as well as tons of misleading advertising, and foods which are (mostly) so processed that they cannot possibly provide the nutrition or the health benefits which foods should provide, or which are necessary for our bodies to work as they were intended, without disease. ( I suggest everyone watch the movie "Supersize me", which is a total indictment of the fast food industry.)
The cards are stacked against us all with the way things are today in the world. Therefore, it is ever more important that we each educate ourselves about how NOT to fall into the trap of poor dietary habits for the sake of ease. I think everyone reading this should feel great about themselves for spending the time and effort it takes to find real, commonsense information about what lifestyle and dietary changes can be made to lessen the effects of this disease on your health. It is my wish that any information you recieve here may be of benefit, not only to you, but to your whole family.
If your children or grandkids are eating a diet which you think will lead them to the same outcome of diabetes formation as you have had, this could also be a goldern opportunity to obtain some meaningful information which could help to turn that picture around for them, since diabetes seems to run in families (mostly due to various dietary and genetic predispositions).
